Monongahela ordinance will deal with leftover grease from food service establishments

By ERIC SEIVERLING
eseiverling@yourmvi.com

Monongahela restaurants and other food service establishments will soon see a change in how they dispose of leftover grease.
On Wednesday, council held the first reading of its new Grease Management Ordinance for Food Service Establishments.
The ordinance will become official with the second reading at council’s July 14 meeting.
According to Councilman Ken Kulak, the ordinance was not in response to a series of water main breaks in the city in May, but stemmed from public works crews alerting officials to problems after seeing the damage to sewer lines caused by excessive grease.
“We’ve had problems before in areas of the community,” Kulak said. “Our departments that have responded have reported major sources of grease.”
According to Solicitor Todd Pappasergi, food service establishments will be classified into five groups that will be required to have different sizes of grease traps, also known as an interceptor.
• Establishments classified as a deli or ice cream vendor will be required to use a 20-gallon trap.
• Establishments classified as a limited fast-food restaurant will be required to use a 1,000-gallon trap.
• Establishments classified as a full-service restaurant will be required to use a 1,000-gallon trap.
• Establishments classified as a buffet will be required to use a 1,500-gallon trap.
• Establishments classified as large industrial — such as hospitals and lunch cafeterias — will be required to use a 2,000-gallon trap.
The ordinance requires the traps to be cleaned every 90 days.
Pappasergi also said the city will have the right to inspect facilities during business hours and all paperwork regarding grease management must be located onsite.
If a facility is found in violation of the ordinance, they will have 30 days to comply. If the facility doesn’t comply, a second notice will be given and another 30 days to comply will be issued. If a facility does not comply after the second notice, the city will begin a sewer shut-off process through the city’s municipal authority.

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